Appliance for automobiles



Dec. 13, 1932. J. CREVELING 1,390,496

APPLIANCE FOR AUTOMOBILES Filed April ,22, 1924 I N VEN TOR.

Patented Dec. 13, 1932 ATE? QFECE JOHN CREVELING, OF ORACLE, ARIZONA APPLIANCE FOR AUTOMOBILES Application filed April 22, 1924. Serial NO. 708,192.

My invention pertains to that class of auto mobile appliances, manipulated by the driver, and has for a particular object to provide means whereby the driver, at will, may quick- 5 ly and easily cause certain functions to be carried out without interfering with the ordinary operation of the car.

Fig. I is a diagrammatic representation of one type of appliance comprehending my invention, employed to elevate or depressthe beams of light projected by the head-lights.

Fig. II is a diagrammatic representation of certain portions of my invention which are utilized to swing the beams of the head-lights in a right or left-hand direction, and also to indicate, at the rear of the car, the direction intended to turn.

Fig. III is a diagrammatic representation of my invention as used merely to give a rearend signal, as will hereinafter be more fully pointed out.

Referring to Fig. 1,1 represents the floor of any suitable automobile, 2 is the footboard, and 3 is a portion of the dash. 4 is the usual accelerator or foot-throttle pedal, usually manipulated by the right foot. 5 is a lever carried by the shaft 6 which is supported in any kind of suitable bearings, not shown. The member 5 is provided with pins or protruding members 7' andv 8 which normally occupy the positions shown in the drawing, substantially equidistant on each side of thepedal 4, so that whenthe driver is operating the pedal4 his foot is between the members 7 and 8; and, by moving the foot either to the right or left, without changing the position of the pedal 4, he may readily swing the lever 5 to the right or left and rotate the member'6 which carries the'collar' 9 provided with a short lever 10 engaging the spring 11 which normally tends to rotate the shaft 6 and lever 5 into the position occupied in the drawing. The collar 9 also carries a lever 12, united as by an ordinary ball and 17 with the rod 18, pivotally connected as at 19 with the lever 20, fixed upon the shaft 21,

or other suitable indicating device 38, which socket joint 13, with a rod 14 having a shackle which is supported as by bearings 22 and provided with levers 23, pivotally shackled as at 24 to the rods 25, pivotally connected as shown at 26 to the reflectors or parabolic mirrors 27, which are supported as by the hori- 'aontal arms 28, carried in any suitable support within the head-light shell, not shown. 29 is a depression in the floor-board 1, or socket, wherein the heel of the operator is usually rested when operating the car.

Referring to Fig. II, the shaft 14 is to be understood as connected with the lever 5, in the same manner that the shaft 14, in Fig. I, is connected thereto, while the bell-crank lever connected with 14 as at 15 and with the rod 18 as at 17 is, therefore, manipulated in the same manner as in Fig. I; and the rod 18 is connected through 19 and 20 with the shaft 21 which has the cranks 23 connected therewith in a manner similar to Fig. I. The said cranks 23 are provided with-ball and socket joints 30, which are connected, as by members 31, with the hinged connections 32 at the sides of the mirrors or reflectors 27, which are supported as by vertical shafts 33, permitting the reflectors to be swung in a horizontal direction analogous to the movement in a vertical direction indicated in Fig. I. The shaft 16, of Fig. II, is shown as carrying a segmental rack 34, engaging a pinion 35, united to the shaft 36, so that the vertical motion imparted to the rod 14 causes revolution of the shaft 36, which is revolvably mounted. in the sleeve 37, carrying the arrow is connected as by the extension 39 and spring 40 with the rod 36, so as to revolve therewith until arrested in one direction or the other by the pin 41, when further rotation of the rod 36 will merely cause an elongation of the spring. 40.

In Fig. III, the lever 5 is shown as pivoted at 42 and provided with a hub of insulating material 43, a portion of which is cut out and replaced by an electrical conducting portion 44, to which is attached a spring 45 tending to hold the lever 5 inthe position shown in the drawing. A wire 46 is connected with the spring 45 and, therefore, with the section 44 109 and also with the battery indicated at 47 which is connected with one terminal of each of the differently colored lights, indicated at 48 and 49, within the tail-light housing which may be provided with the usual red light disk, as indicated at 50. 51 is a wiper or brush resting normally upon the insulating portion 43 and connectedby the wire 52 with the remaining terminal of the lamp 48. 53 is a similar brush pressing upon the insulating member 43 and connected as by wire 54 with the remaining terminal of the lamp in- 29, or upon any suitable foot rest, and controlling the speed of the car by manipulation of the pedal 4, a slight motion of the 'foot to the left will, by the engagement of the pin 7, cause the lever 5 to be swung to the left and the shaft 6 rotated in a clockwise direction, which will raise the joint 13 and member 14 and cause the bell-crank lever upon the shaft 16 to rotate in a counter-clockwise direction, which will cause the rod 18 'tobe moved forwardly, which in turn will causethe shaft 21 and cranks23 to rotate in a clockwise direction, which, by moving the rods 25, will tilt the reflectors 27 downwardly; and it will be plain that,-if the drivers foot be shifted to the right, pin 8 will cause the member 5 to be rotated in the opposite direction to that described above, whereupon the reflectors 27 will be tilted upwardly.

Therefore, at night, when the head-lights are in use and the car 1s approaching another car headedin the opposite direct-ion, a slight rotation of the drivers throttle foot to the left will cause the beams of light from his head-lights to be swung downwardly upon arrive at the top ofa hill, a like movement will cause the beams of the head-lights to be thrown downthe hill in a manner that will light the road ahead better than when in their normal position; or, if he arrive at the bottom of a hill, a slight motion of the foot in a right-hand direction, without interfering with the operation of the pedal 4, will cause the beams of his head-lights to be swung upwardly so as to light the road up the hill ahead of him better than when in their normal position. And, as soon as the car is upon the hill and an upwardly disposed beam is no longer desired, the foot is merely to be returned to its usual driving position when the spring 10 will cause the" head-lights to be placed in their normal positions, in an obvious manner.

Referring to Fig. II, if the driver wishes to make a left-hand turn, he has merely to swing his foot toward the left which will cause the'lever 5 to be swung in a clockwise direction, which will lift the me her 14 and rotate the shaft 16 in a counter-clockwise direction. This will push the rod 18 forwardly and rotate the shaft 21 and cranks 23 in a clockwise direction, which, in turn, through the ball and socket joints 30, rods 31 and connections 32, will cause the head-light beams to be swung to the left to the extent desired to illuminate the road in the direction the driver is intending to turn. The rotation of the rod 16, as above outlined, in a counter-clockwise direction, by rotating the rack 34 in the same direction, will cause the pinion 35 to rotate the shaft 36 in a counter:

clockwise direction, as viewed by a person back of the car. By using a small pinion 35, I cause the rotation of the rack 34, through a small angle, to rotate the shaft 36 through a comparatively large angle, and, therefore, a slight upward movement of the rod 14 causes the arrow 38 to have considerable movement in a counter-clockwise direction, indicating to a car, behind the one we are considering, that the driverahead intends turning to the left. As'soon as the arrow 38 is moved into a horizontal position, further revolution is restrained by the pin 41, while the head-ligh s may be further swung to the left, if desired, and the further rotation of the rod 86 will simply elongate the spring 40 and hold the arrow 38 in the horizontal positionindicating a turn to the left, until the spring 10 is allowed to move the parts into their normal positions, as described above. If desired to make a righthand turn, a slight movement of the throttle foot to the right will cause the beams of the head-lights to be shifted to the right to the extent'desired, while the arrow 38 will be revolved to indicate a right-hand turn, in a manner similar to that outlined above. It will, of course, be obvious that the manipulation of the rod 14 may be used to operate either the head-lights or tail-end signal or both, as here chosen for illustration.

In the modification shown in Fig. III,

the center'light would ordinarily be red, to fulfill the function of the usual tail-light, while some other color may be chosen for the light at 48 to indicate a right-hand turn 4 is to'be made, and still another color may be chosen for 49 to indicate a left-hand turn; and their positions relative tothe normal red light would indicate, whatever their colors may be, the direction of turn intended, provided the lights were properly manipulated.

In the structure ofthe drawing, a motion of the throttle foot to the right will cause the lever 5 to be revolved in a counter-clock wise direction, which will close the contact 5344 and allow current to flow from the battery 47, through wire 46, spring 45, contact member 44, wiper 53 and wire 54, to the lamp 49,'trom which return is made to the battery, andsthis would indicate a left-hand turn. Moving the throttle'-foot1to' the leftwould throw the lever 5 in the reverse direction and cause the contact 445l to he made, whereupon thelamp 48 would be lighted and indicate a right-hand turn, wmle, of course, a mere reversal of the connection of wires 54 and 52 would cause a motion of the foot to the'right to indicate a right-hand turn and a motion ofthe foot or the other may be used to give the proper signal, depending upon the system of operation chosenby the user. Obviously this arrangement may he used'in place of the slgnal- 'ing device shown in Fig. II.

j From the foregoing it will be noted that I have provided means whereby the head-lights may be manipulated either to avoid the usual glare from confusing an approaching driver or for better illuminating the road when going over the top of a hill or reaching the bottom of a hill, and also a means for throwing the head-light beams either to the right or left when it is desired to malce a turn to the right or left, andalso indicating to a following car the direction of turn intended; and that these functions may be readily performed without in any way interfering with the normal operation of the car, as they do not employ the hands of the driver nor necessitate the particular engagement of any mechanism by the foot, requiring a change in the operating position thereof, but may be operated by the pedal foot, which in ordinary practice is really controlling the operation of the engine except at such times as the toot-brake is applied; and that the lateral movement or swinging oi": the pedal foot slightly upon the heel may readily benals by lateral movement of the foot; or they spring 10 may be omitted and the head-lights or other instrumentalities will retaintheir to any of the details of construction or exact modes of operation outlined above which are given merely to portray examples of embodiments of my invention, as wide departure may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention which is as set forth in thefollowing claims:

,1. In an automobile having foot operated engine controlling means, a signal system and an inclined floor board, controlling means entirely separate and independent of the engine controlling means for affecting the sig nalsystem', arranged to engage the foot of the 'driver'whe'n operating the engine controlling means to simultaneously and inde pendently operate the signal controlling means, said signal controlling means comprehending movable means mounted upon the'inclined floor board and provided with foot engaging means in juxtaposition to the engine controlling means and movable in a plane parallel to said floor board, and means whereby motion thereof affects the signal system.

2. In an automobile having engine controlling means, a lighting system and direc tion indicating means, controlling means for voluntarily and coordinately affecting the lighting system and the direction indicating *1 means 1n ]LlXlZapOSBCl relation to and separate from the engine controlling means and pro-.

vided with means whereby the member of a driver operating the engine controlling means may simultaneously operate the lightcontrolling means and the direction indicating means independently of the operat on of the engine controlling means including movable means engaging and operated by said member while controlling the engine.

3. In an automobile having a foot operated throttle controlling means and direction indicating means, separate and independent controlling means for affecting the direction indicating means associated with the throttle controlling means comprising foot engaging means whereby the footer a driver operating the throttle controlling means may simultaneously or independently voluntarily operate the direction indicating means and the throttle controlling means.

4. The combination with a vehicle, of

means for illuminating the path to be traveled thereby, signalingmeans for indicating the direction of said path, and means for voluntarily shifting the area of illumination of the first named means and simultaneously affecting the operation of the signaling means in a greater degree until the signaling operationis complete, and means for then arresting the operation of the signaling means.

5. The combination with a vehicle, of means for illuminating the path to be traveled thereby, signaling means'for indicating the direction of said path, and means for .voluntarily shifting the area of illumination of the first named means and simultaneously aifecting the signaling means in a greater degree until the signaling operation is complete comprising a resilient connection, and means for then arresting the operation of the signaling means, said resilientconnection permitting further shifting-of the area of illumination.

6. The combination with a vehicle, of means for illuminating the path 7 to ,be traveled thereby, signaling means for indicating'thc direction of said path, and means for voluntarily shifting the area of illumination of the first named means and simultaneously eflectingmovement of the signaling means in a greater degree until the signaling movement is complete, and means for then arresting the movement of the signaling means, said efi ecting means including means permitting further shifting ofthe area ofillumination independently of the signal.

7. In an automobile having means for illuminating the path to be traveled thereby, signaling means for indicating the direction of said path and foot operated throttle controlling means, means engaging the foot while operating the throttle controlling means and means whereby motion of said engaging meansaffects the illuminating means and the signaling means.

8. In an. automobile having means for illuminating the path to be traveled thereby, signaling means for indicating the direction of said path and footoperated throttle controlling means, means engaging the foot while operating the throttle. controlling means and means whereby motion of said ena in means affects the illuminatin means 8* b and the signaling means independently of the throttle controlling means.

9. The combination with a ,vehicle, of

means for illuminating the path to be trav eled thereby, signaling means for indicating the direction of said path, and means for voluntarily shifting the area of illumination of the first-named means and simultaneously affecting motion imparted to' the signaling means in a greater degree until the signalling operation is complete. i

10. The combination with-a vehicle, of

11. The I combination with a vehicle, ofv

means for illuminating the path to betraveled thereby, si thedirection of said path including a rear signal, and means for shifting the area of illumination of the first-named means and simultaneously and coordinately aifecting the signaling means whereby the illuminating means is adjusted to particularly illuminate:

in the direction to be followed and a signal of such intention automatically given.

12. In an automobile having throttle controlling means operated by the foot of a driver by rotation of the foot in a vertical plane, independent and separately supportedmeans for simultaneously and voluntarily controlling an additional useful operating.

by-rotation of said foot in a given plane about a substantially fixed point, means for determining said point and means for simultaneously and at will performing an addition useful operating function by said foot comprehending independently movable means simultaneously engaging said foot and movable by rotation thereof about said fixed point in a different plane.

14. In an automobile having throttle controlling means operated by the foot of a driver, means for simultaneously and voluntarily controlling an additional independent useful operating function by said foot'without interfering with the operation of the throttle controlling means comprehending independently operable means engaged by the foot while operating the throttle-controlling means and movable only in a plane otherthan that of the movement of said last named means.

' JOHN L. CREVELING.

naling means for. indicating. 

